


Heartstrings

by dchdsy



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Angst, Cancer patient - Freeform, F/F, Fluff, Heart&Lung Cancer, Hurt/Comfort, fluffy angst??, suayeon if you squint, what are tags
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:28:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24325042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dchdsy/pseuds/dchdsy
Summary: There wasn't much time left, but she swore to make it worth it.
Relationships: Han Dong | Handong/Kim Yoohyeon
Comments: 2
Kudos: 37





	Heartstrings

**Author's Note:**

> This is a piece I decided to write on the side while still having Hush to take care off. Hope you enjoy~  
> Oh yeah wait! *hangs box of tissues* now you may go

It felt like a bucked of cold water was dumped onto her, the words leaving the doctor’s mouth with as much sympathy as she could muster, the assistant next to her looking down at the information board, fingers nervously tapping against it.

“Your disease primarily found host in your lungs, but it unfortunately spread towards the heart muscles.” She spoke, eyes staring into her patient’s shocked ones, trying to convey some feeling of comfort, but she knew it was useless at this point. “Despite the emergency operation, further treatment is necessary.”

Shocked and confused eyes turned to hopeful, but it was a weak glint behind tired orbs. “Then-”

“The heart is a fragile organ, and the disease has weakened it even further.” The doctor cut her words sharp, a hand motioning towards the monitor. “It has unfortunately reached a point where interference to the organ has a higher possibility of failure than success.”

The patient’s head dropped, her body slumped against the headboard. What did this mean?

“Miss Han,” the doctor exhaled a long and tired sigh, her eyes sad. “I’m sorry to announce it like this, but you don’t have much longer to live. There is nothing we can do to help you.”

_But… wasn’t it their job to save her?_

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

The doctor and assistant exited the patient’s room, leaving her alone to process everything that was said to her. The blue haired woman of the two immediately walked down the hall towards her office.

“Doctor Lee!” the younger called out, being wary of her volume to not disturb any other hospital staff or patients.

“Yoohyeon,” Lee turned towards her assistant, a pained look in her eyes. “I hope this isn’t asking much, but please take care of Miss Han. I’ll come in for the daily check up and tests.”

Then she turned around again, leaving Yoohyeon to blankly stare at their patient’s personal info, or what they could scrap out from the unconscious woman.

_Han Dong, 21, Chinese, no contacts in Korea._

Following the hospital protocol, Yoohyeon walked towards the door, lightly knocking to announce her arrival, and then entered slowly, avoiding any sound that could make Handong break further. The Chinese woman still stood seated against the headboard, eyes blankly staring down at her hands, the traces of tears on her cheeks.

“M-Miss Han,” the assistant stuttered, biting her lip to calm her nerves while the other woman didn’t show any reaction. “Due to limited information, would you please answer some questions for me?”

Still no reaction, not even a blink. Yoohyeon continued anyway.

“Do you still remember what you were doing before losing consciousness and waking up here?”

The grey haired doctor-in-the-making patiently waited, standing at the foot of the bed, close enough to hear any whisper, far enough to not make her patient in any way uncomfortable. But Handong said nothing.

“We found no contacts in Korea, so we will try to contact your family in China, m-”

“No.”

It was spoken so low and fast, Yoohyeon almost missed it.

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t… inform them.” The Chinese frowned in thought, her words accented as she tried to make sense of what she was saying. Yoohyeon quickly understood the patient wasn’t yet fluent in their language. Handong’s eyes still stared down at her hands, which were now fidgeting.

Yoohyeon understood that no one would want to suddenly drop the bomb on their family members and inform them of their fated departure, but they still deserved to know.

“But we need someone-”

“I don’t have anyone.”

The doctor stood still in shock. That wasn’t really possible, was it? Not when the reports stated about living family members in the neighboring country.

“Why?” she asked absentmindedly, inwardly hitting herself for forgetting to consider the other’s privacy. Perhaps this was a personal matter she didn’t want to discuss, and Handong’s expression proved her that much. The foreigner grit her teeth, looking away as her eyes shone with a fresh set of tears.

“I ran away.” A whisper, a sad smile on her lips. “And there is no way back.”

It became clear that Handong wasn’t going to elaborate any further, so Yoohyeon only looked down in sadness, striking a line through the emergency contact question on her board.

“How long do I have?” Handong suddenly asked, her sentence slow, eyes looking outside through the window.

“Indefinite.” Came the short unsatisfactory answer. “But Doctor Lee has guessed… less than a month.”

“Oh.”

“Usually people in such a condition are offered a choice of euthanasia.” The tone Yoohyeon used gave off the feeling she didn’t really like the method of quick death. “Doctor Lee would however like to see if there is any change this week, but it is still of your free will if you choose to take the treatment.”

“Didn’t you say the treatment wouldn’t help?” Handong wiped a tear from her eye, voice cracking ever so slightly.

Yoohyeon looked up with a shocked expression in her eyes at hearing the question. For some reason it felt unsettling. The expression the other one was wearing made a sick feeling form in the pit of her stomach. Handong looked already so dead. This situation didn’t sit well with her.

“Miss Han!” the assistant herself winced at her loud voice. Biting her lip, Yoohyeon thought over what she was going to say again. She was definitely prying more than she should. “I promise I will make this month a memorable one and not a burden!”

Handong only stared at her with a confused look.

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 1 | Hospital room 273]_

Yoohyeon pushed the door open slowly, stepping inside the room to check on her patient. Handong was sitting against the headboard again; eyes gazing outside the window, watching the wind gently caress the tree branches. The tray of food was left on the table beside her, only bits of it touched, the Chinese hadn’t eaten much, not that Yoohyeon found the hospital food any appetizing.

Her gaze didn’t shift away from the window, and under the dim lighting of the room, she looked more dead than alive.

“How are you?” the grey haired woman asked, approaching the table by the bedside to retrieve the tray of food.

“As good as a dying person can be.” Handong answered, her voice sounding an octave lower, tired. Yoohyeon frowned at her answer. The sunlight warming the outside – giving it a beautifully colored scenery – seemed to not reach the room, despite the open curtains. They were in a colorless dimension, and just like it was devoid of color, it was also devoid of life.

Handong didn’t look at Yoohyeon, not when the medic checked the machines around her, or when she stepped in front of her with the tray. Her eyes wouldn’t leave the window, trying to grasp what she could of the outside. And Yoohyeon noticed that.

“Try to eat something more, I’ll take you outside after.” The younger offered, and at that, Handong turned to look at her for a split second with questioning eyes. “Why?” she asked, and then returned to gazing outside.

“A walk outside is healthy, you need some fresh air.” Yoohyeon said simply, leaving the tray down on the bed and making her way towards a wheelchair that was left next to the bathroom.

“What’s the point if that isn’t going to help me?”

Her steps froze. Doctor Lee had come in with the result of all tests earlier, and none was positive. The hope was vague; probably a miracle the patient could even stand up. But Yoohyeon was determined, even though she herself knew her goal was a bit out of reach. It didn’t matter, she will still stay to the promise she made to Handong.

“While fresh air won’t make your cancer go away, carrying it with a healthy lifestyle is still better.” Yoohyeon spoke as she returned with Handong’s wheelchair. “It’ll make it… less painful… emotionally and physically.”

Handong bit her bottom lip slightly, turning back to the window to avoid Yoohyeon’s gaze as she placed the tray away again. Seeing no point in resisting, Handong let the medic help her into the wheelchair with a small complaint that she could manage that much herself.

It took a few minutes until Handong found herself shielding her eyes from the sunlight outside. Yoohyeon had to request for Doctor Lee’s allowance for the patient to leave her room, and the doctor couldn’t refuse the tall woman practically jumping impatiently as she tried to explain.

Birds chirped around them, and Handong noticed nurses accompanying other patients around the hospital’s backyard which stretched wide like a private park. Yoohyeon smiled as she saw the Chinese’s eyes regain a bit of light, the dullness being pushed back as she curiously scanned the area. The hospital room was really filled with negative energy!!

Pushing the wheelchair away from the entrance (which they had been occupying the last few minutes), Yoohyeon started touring Handong around the little park. They got between the trees to hide a bit from the sun, and Handong’s eyes hurried from person to person, trying to memorize the unfamiliar faces.

“The one over there probably slipped on a wet floor.” Yoohyeon spoke suddenly, leaning down to whisper on Handong’s ear as she pointed at a man dragging his left foot (which had a big cast on it). “Can you try guessing the other one?”

“Eh…” Handong scanned around the different people, a lot of them patients, but nothing came to mind. “Car crash?” she said after a while, motioning to a person with her head, finding pointing her finger impolite.

“Yah, that’s not funny at all!” Yoohyeon whined, hitting the handle of her chair playfully. “Maybe he went face to face with some wild animal.”

“That’s also not funny.” Handong deadpanned at the younger, who pouted at her, sticking her tongue out after… cute. Yoohyeon pushed the wheelchair again, walking a few more meters and then moving over to their next victim- erm, next unknowing guess game candidate.

“What happened to her?” Yoohyeon asked in a fake narrator voice. Handong shrugged, looking towards the woman who seemed completely fine on the outside, but the lack of staff uniform showed she used to be a patient at least. The area wasn’t open to random passerby.

Yoohyeon herself couldn’t think of something humorous, her mind storming through different diseases that seemed inexistent to the outside eye. The small smile Yoohyeon missed on Handong’s face was starting to slowly vanish.

And then it was gone.

“Yoohyeon take me inside.” Her voice almost broke as she tried to coldly send the message to the medic. Yoohyeon’s heart fell; she understood Handong’s sudden change.

The woman they had been watching was pulled into the embrace of a strong man, then she kneeled down to hug her children tightly.

They were all so happy, their smiles’ brightness rivaling the sunlight at that moment. But even though she should be happy for the reunited family, Handong felt... mad? Devastated?

All because she knew she didn’t have anything anymore.

She was going to die alone, no one was going to mourn her, and no one was going to stay and hold her hand as she tried to fight her disease.

Handong was all alone.

“I’m sorry.” Yoohyeon’s voice was a sad whisper as she closed the curtains. Handong had her face in her hands, not letting Yoohyeon see the swirl of emotions she was going through. But the grey haired woman heard the silent cries. “I’m so sorry.”

 _This was so unfair_.

“Yoohyeon please leave me alone.”

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 4 | Hospital room 273]_

The following days, just like Handong had requested, Yoohyeon left her alone. She only saw the young assistant whenever Doctor Lee came for her check up and tests, other cases and needs of the patient were handed to the nurses.

But on the 4th day after she got hospitalized, the grey haired soon-to-be doctor barged into her room, cursing over the noise while carrying multiple bags in her arms.

“Good morning!” her face lit up seeing the patient sitting on her bed looking at her with confused eyes. At least she hadn’t waked her up with the noise. “So uh… I don’t know what you like, so I got a bunch of stuff judging off of what you usually eat from the hospital food!” Yoohyeon spit out way too fast, giving Handong a hard time keeping up. “Since I know the food here sucks and you’ll be here for a while so I thought maybe you’d like something else.” The plastic bags were settled on the free side of the patient’s bed, the open tops revealing boxes from different stores around the area. “I just hope you like something from what I bought! I personally really enjoy the food and would recomme-”

“You talk too much.” Handong’s lips thinned into a straight line, and Yoohyeon’s shoulders dropped with a sigh. She was rambling on and on instead of letting the older check what she brought. “Thank you.” A small smile stretched on the patient’s lips and Yoohyeon’s mood lit up again. She sat down beside Handong’s feet with a small “Let me help you with these.”, pulling every box out and throwing the bags on the floor to pick up later.

“I thought you weren’t coming again.” Handong spoke up in a small voice. Yoohyeon looked at her with questioning eyes for a moment, then realizing her poor number of visits she had paid to the woman.

“I just had to go back to the university for a bit.” Yoohyeon fixed her legs under her, rocking back and forth as she waited for the other to pick something to eat. She had even told the nurse to not bring food today. Maybe she wasn’t hungry? “So the nurses had to cover some of my chores around the hospital.”

Handong hummed, her eyes fixed on the different meals in front of her, the knowledge Yoohyeon hadn’t gone away because of her easing a part of her mind. She didn’t want to be rude to the assistant.

“I want to try this one.”

\--

_[Day 4 | Coffee shop]_

After finishing their food and getting first check up of the day with Doctor Lee, Yoohyeon convinced Handong to give ‘the Outside’ another chance. Pushing the wheelchair for a good 30 minutes, the two finally arrived at the Café, the doctor in charge of course giving Yoohyeon a strict timetable as when to bring their patient back or she would barge through the shop with her car to pick up the Chinese and then probably run Yoohyeon over. Okay the last part was worrying….

“We can’t get you anything with much caffeine…” Yoohyeon was looking at the menu with an intense gaze, skimming through the different drinks while the other leaned on her chair, amused.

“Yoohyeon we are in a café.”

“They have other drinks too!”

“Of course, water.”

Yoohyeon groaned in defeat, slumping onto the table, looking back at the Chinese with a betrayed pout. She picked her menu again, this time loosely holding it, mumbling something about ungratefulness while sticking her tongue out in concentration.

Cute, Handong chuckled. The small sound from the usually quiet woman made Yoohyeon’s breath catch in her throat.

_She sounded so alive._

\--

“Handong…” Yoohyeon sipped her iced Americano, looking towards the café’s door and evading the chinese’s eyes. “I’m… sorry for the other day.” She sighed. “When I brought you to the park…”

“I knew you were still mentally and emotionally broken from the news, I should have known being around people would not help your case at all.”

Handong sipped her hot drink, taking a few good seconds before gulping it down, letting the warm liquid burn her throat slightly. It reminded her she could still feel, that she wasn’t completely gone yet. “It wasn’t completely your fault.” She said after a while.

Yoohyeon looked around the place as she sighed again. The café was still empty, the rush hours coming much later. It was quiet, Yoohyeon wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. “Still, I’m sorry.”

“I should… actually thank you.” Handong took another sip. “For bringing me out of my room.”

The Chinese woman smiled behind her glass when the younger grinned at her, eyes closing into crescent moons, a faint pink coloring her cheeks.

\--

The image of Yoohyeon trying to push the wheelchair out while holding the door open with her foot was funny to Handong. Yoohyeon refused her help too.

It was about time for the medical student to bring the patient back to the hospital for doctor Lee to run another test. Handong clenched and unclenched her fists on top of her lap, her body feeling restless but tired at the same time. Her legs were numb, and she felt bad for Yoohyeon having to push the wheel chair all the way back.

This entire time she hadn’t refused whenever the doctors would sit her down on the chair, assisting her to all places she needed to visit. They reasoned her disease would constantly drain power and energy from her body, making her exhausted even after resting all day in bed.

But this only made her feel even more dead.

“Yooh…” she started, catching the younger by surprise at the nickname. “I want to walk.”

Now that surprised Yoohyeon even more.

“S-sure.” She wasn’t sure why the word came in a stutter, but the girl wasted no time helping the older up to her feet. Stepping in a distance away from her, the grey haired medic waited for her to take a step, still a bit worried if the patient could even hold herself together for long.

Handong took a heavy step forward. It felt weird, but it was still better than sitting for hours. Her balance faltered, head getting dizzy and for a brief moment, she felt like falling.

Yoohyeon quickly grasped her elbows, helping the other regain her posture. She walked to her side, still holding one of her arms.

“Can you still go?” Yoohyeon asked with worry clear in her voice.

Handong grasped the doctor’s hand tightly, leaning on her shoulder lightly as she exhaled a long breath. “Yes.”

“I’ll ask the café staff if they can keep the wheelchair for us for a bit. I’ll come get it later.”

“Thanks…”

Yoohyeon gave a squeeze to her hand in response. She smiled, steps slow as the two kept a comfortable pace, walking towards the hospital, the wind breeze singing a slow song as it accompanied them the whole way.

_I promise, I won’t let you suffer alone anymore._

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 7 | Hospital Room 273]_

“Yoohyeon.”

“Hmm?”

The medical student turned her attention to the patient when the older woman didn’t respond after her short hum. Fixing the papers inside a drawer for Doctor Lee, Yoohyeon removed her glasses as she nodded towards the Chinese to continue. Handong looked out of the window for a few seconds, as if to collect her thoughts, maybe letting her first planned words go.

“I’ve never tried bowling.” She said after a pause. Yoohyeon looked on quizzically, a bit confused at the sudden sentence.

“Wanna go?” she asked blinking, walking away from the table to stay closer to her new friend. It had been a week and she liked to believe that the two were friends already… or at least closer than just patient and doctor.

Handong hesitated a bit, looking down at her fingers. Yoohyeon asked her daily if she wanted to go somewhere, try something she liked or had never done before (while still pondering on all risks of increased heartbeat and other factors that might trigger a sudden attack to the girl’s heart), and after a bit of a thought, bowling had seemed like a good idea. It looked fun and not that hard at least.

But now that they had reached this point, the still broken part of her wished she had just stayed silent, spending another gloomy day in her room and waiting for the grim reaper to pay her a visit.

“Yeah!” she answered finally, the machine next to her showing a change to her heartbeat as it quickened slightly. Yoohyeon got a bit worried but shrugged it off, called it excitement.

“Just don’t get too hyper and pass out, okay?” the medic laughed, and Handong chuckled at her lame attempt of a joke.

“Of course.” She smiled slightly, shaking her head as the younger girl started jumping in excitement herself.

\--

_[Day 7 | Bowling Hall]_

“You suck at this.” Handong stated, looking at the younger with disappointed eyes. Said medic tiptoed around slowly, turning to face the Chinese with hurt eyes, her lip sticking out in a pout.

“Let’s see you then, genius.” Yoohyeon stuck her tongue out at the patient, handing her the ball and still staying close behind, an arm already stretched as support across her back.

“Hey you are acting as if I’m a grandma!” Handong hit her shoulder playfully, weighting the ball between her hands, finding a comfortable position to roll it. “I’m not going to roll together with the ball!”

“Well at least if you do we have a sure chance to hit all cones!” Yoohyeon flashed her two thumbs up, wiggling her eyebrows.

“What if I hit this tall tree cone instead?” and perhaps the Korean gulped at the Chinese’s threat.

“Ha ha… I don’t have a score point counter, do I?” Yoohyeon quickly replied, motioning with her hands all over her body then looking around as if to assure herself that she wouldn’t be suddenly converted to a living bowling cone.

Handong narrowed her eyes at the grey haired girl, then rolled her shot, eyes following the curves the ball took, until it finally hit the cones.

Score.

“Aha!” she didn’t even have time to brag about her clean shot, her companion already jumping on her to congratulate her, running off to grab another ball. What a hyper puppy…

The result didn’t change much, Yoohyeon’s aim was solely for everywhere but the cones.

“Who’s the grandma bowler now!?” Handong laughed as Yoohyeon squatted in front of the ball, rolling it away with her palms, staring back at the Chinese with the same pout as before. The ball went on and on slowly, almost out of the field… but it didn’t…

“Ha! Grandma bowling wins!” Yoohyeon began striking victory poses, her score finally displaying something other than 0.

Handong laughed along, that was until her breath caught in her throat. Putting a hand in the middle of her chest, the Chinese tried to take in deep breaths, her breathing already irregular. Yoohyeon noticed immediately, quickly rushing to her side, her hand wrapping above Handong’s, feeling her beating heart under her fingertips.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, worry clear in her voice. Her free hand started rubbing comforting circles on Handong’s back.

“I’m fine.” The patient coughed out. “Just a bit too excited.” She tried to joke it off, but the younger only frowned.

“Handong you need to tell me if you are not feeling well.”

“Yoohyeon, I’m fine! See, it’s calmer now.” Her cheeks were tinted red a bit, now noticing the hand above Handong’s, fingertips not being tickled by her accelerated heartbeat anymore.

Under Yoohyeon’s still worried advice, the two sat down with drinks for a while, letting the patient’s heart rest for a bit. They were surrounded by a comfortable silence, until a scream erupted from the bowling field several meters away from theirs.

“What the-”

The slight panic was washed away however when they saw a group of three, the source of the previous scream still being loud over her continuous fails at bowling. The youngest looking of the three kept laughing her heart out, while the third one tried to hide her laughter as the smallest huffed in annoyance.

The blue hair seemed familiar.

Wait…

“Doctor Lee?!” Yoohyeon almost shouted, startling the woman next to her. “Oh my god, I have to film this!” she added quickly in a whisper, her phone already in hand, camera opened. She pressed record after finding her phone a stable place to be able to catch the scene in front of them.

“What are you doing?” Handong chuckled at her antics, to what Yoohyeon responded with an evil smile.

“Ha, this is what Siyeon gets for acting all cool at the hospital!” she replied, still in a whisper as if the doctor would suddenly hear them. At that given moment, Siyeon rolled her own ball, dropping to her knees as it went out of field. “Haha look at that loser!”

“Yoohyeon… You aren’t any better.” Handong tried to hold her laughter, a hand still pressed against her heart.

“Blasphemy! My grandma bowling techniques are superior!” the serious face in which she said all that made the other lose it. Yoohyeon’s expression broke into a wide grin, eyes shining like stars. Handong’s laugh was something she would gladly get used to hearing every day.

“Then show me more of your grandma techniques, granny.” Handong was teasing her now, but Yoohyeon still flexed her inexistent muscles, grabbing a ball and squatting to roll it away just like earlier. A success, she proudly punched her chest.

While on the other side, another scream was heard.

“NOOOO!”

Apparently the doctor’s younger sister, their star at bowling, had finally missed a shot. Such a tragic story. What Yoohyeon found extremely entertaining however, was all of Siyeon’s acts towards the other girl. “So much for our tough Doctor.” She had laughed. “Look at that loser in front of her crush!”

“Crush?”

“… I guess?”

“Yoohyeon.” That moment felt real perfect for a facepalm, but it happened to be the same time when ‘crush’ finally scored, and the joy was present in both girls. Handong mumbled a ‘cute’ as the doctor spun the smaller girl around, while Yoohyeon had a smug smirk on. “I was right!”

Handong rolled her eyes, while Yoohyeon was more focused on her phone, making sure the camera angle was perfect.

“Hehe, this is going to be the perfect blackmail material.” She chuckled lowly, trying to imitate that of a villain.

“Great work, grandma. Now show me more of your bowling skills.”

“Of course, sit back and watch young one, grandma is going to teach you some old school!”

Laughter surrounded them. Handong really didn’t know what awaited her in the future days, but she knew Yoohyeon made her forget the pain.

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 14 | Hospital Room 273]_

A light cough disturbed the otherwise silent room, tired eyes gazing over at the ceiling above. It was white, empty, nothing remotely interesting about it. But unlike the rest of the room, where walls were lined up with machines and all sorts of items to remind her of her situation, the ceiling was more soothing. Usually she would be gazing outside the window, to the park around the hospital, but the curtain was closed when she woke up…

A shriek – which sounded like the person was both scared but also wary of their presence inside a hospital – sounded from outside in the halls. Handong raised an eyebrow when the source of said noise entered the patient’s room in a hurry, locking the door as she breathed hard leaning against it.

The Chinese laughed at the sight, snapping Yoohyeon out of her terrified expression. “She found out!!!”

Another small laugh, the patient finding the situation really amusing. “She’s going to kill me, my god!” Yoohyeon continued, trying to make the Chinese understand her case right now was not in the least funny.

“Of course she’d find out about us in the bowling hall eventually.” Handong said with a small smile, making the doctor pout. “And wasn’t the video your blackmail material?”

Yoohyeon rolled her eyes, walking over to the window, drawing the curtains open, knowing her friend always liked to gaze outside when bored. Which stupid nurse closed it to begin with-

“Yeah, I used it and then she threatened me with scissors!” Yoohyeon flailed around dramatically, earning another laugh from her patient. “Scissors!!”

Despite her act – though if the medic was honest, Siyeon was indeed terrifying with her scissors – the girl found a smile morphing onto her lips, leaning against the window, soon grinning like a fool at her achievement of making her friend laugh. She looked happy at least, despite tired eyes gazing at her softly, head shaking at the doctor’s stupidity.

Yoohyeon knew this sight was still rare, death waiting at your door, ready to knock at any moment was not really comforting. But Handong looked better every day, spiritually at least.

“Yoo-” a cough interrupted her call, then another, followed by another, and Handong doubled over, hand covering her mouth as she entered a coughing fit.

Yoohyeon hurried to her side, one hand hitting her back softly, while the other held her forehead as the Chinese finally calmed down.

“No fever.” Yoohyeon concluded after a few seconds, leaning over the older girl, the bed mattress dipping under her knee. “Does anything hurt?”

“It felt like I just coughed my lungs out.” Handong tried to laugh it off as a joke, but stopped when her throat started to scratch again, and the look in Yoohyeon’s eyes was something she hated to see. The sadness and worry in her eyes, the slight part of her lips, then the frown. “They just burn a little, I’m fine.”

Yoohyeon’s worry didn’t fade away, as much as she wanted to believe the other. “I’ll get your medicine.” She said, getting off the bed and walking towards the door. “… and Siyeon.”

Sometimes it came back to hit her like concrete, the fact that in the end, she wasn’t an able enough doctor to help Handong.

\--

_[Day 14 | Doc. Lee Siyeon’s Office]_

Siyeon looked up from the papers scattered on her table, raising an eyebrow as she saw Yoohyeon enter her office. The doctor didn’t expect her assistant would turn in so soon after being threatened with a pair of scissors.

“Did you finally come to give up the video?” Siyeon asked with a smirk, despite the expression in Yoohyeon’s face whispering worry to her.

“Handong started coughing again.” Yoohyeon sighed. “She said it made her lungs burn slightly.”

“Oh.” Siyeon furrowed her eyebrows, picking up the result of the patient’s latest test, her lips forming a thin line as she read them over. “Sigh, Yoohyeon she isn’t getting any better.”

“I know, but-”

“The operation is too risky, and the longer we leave her cancer be, the more dangerous it will become. The medications are only hindering it, they’re just adding a few more days to her lifespan.”

The grey haired woman didn’t even sit down in front of the doctor, her body frozen in place since she closed the door to the office, head lowered as she bit down on her lower lip.

“Handong still doesn’t want to be operated.” Yoohyeon sighed shakily. “She’s afraid.”

Siyeon rolled in her swivel chair, getting up to lean on her table, being thus eye to eye with Yoohyeon. “Then convince her to accept the operation.”

“The chances are really low Siyeon-”

“But you still don’t want her to suffer, right?” Siyeon’s voice rose in volume. Yoohyeon for some reason, was getting on her nerves. “I’m the surgeon and her doctor, Yooh, at least I can operate on her lungs, without affecting her heart. That will lower her pain!”

“It’s not fair…” the doctor mumbled, tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

“Yoohyeon, you are here to learn…” Siyeon crossed her arms, that wolf gaze she was known for boring into Yoohyeon. “Don’t get too attached.”

Clicking her tongue, Yoohyeon turned heels and just left.

\--

_[Day 14 | Outside]_

Birds chirped overhead, following a rhythmic song together with the sound coming from the wheelchair pushed towards the car waiting just outside the hospital backyard. The security guard outside stared ahead confused, but questioned neither the doctors nor the patient being wheeled towards the exit.

It wasn’t really against the rules and policy, but it was still very rare to see a patient from the chronic department casually enter a transport vehicle which wasn’t another emergency ambulance.

Handong looked down at her hands, lazily playing with her thumb and index, listening to her doctor and her assistant talk with only half a mind. Doctor Lee had already explained her condition to her, and even to Yoohyeon, but the current discussion sounded more like Doctor Lee threatening the clumsy assistant if she messed up something or forgot to pay attention to any symptoms.

Gazing outside the window, the Chinese patient entered her own world, thoughts swirling in a mess inside her head. Yoohyeon said nothing the whole ride, leaving her to process everything, only promising their destination would be a fun experience.

_Why does she even waste her time on me?_

Each time she opened her eyes to the sunlight seeping through the window, Handong simply thought ‘Ah, another day.’ mind wondering off to when the last time would be, when she’d last see the brightness, the white walls, Yoohyeon…

A light cough interrupted her thoughts, an itchy and burning sensation spreading through her chest. Warmth enveloped her hand lying on top of the middle seat, Yoohyeon’s fingers interlacing with hers.

It wasn’t anything much, or any form of medical help considering the situation, but it still spoke to her as silent comfort, like a reminder she wasn’t alone anymore. It made her smile slightly.

_Why is she such an idiot?_

It didn’t take much longer for the vehicle to park next to a few other cars and Handong looked around confusedly, trying to figure out where they were.

“The… Zoo?” she raised an eyebrow at the doctor who lent her a shoulder as the driver pulled out her wheelchair. Yoohyeon rubbed the back of her head nervously, a sheepish grin stretching on her lips.

“Well… I have never gone on dates before, so had to ask for advice.” She laughed shortly, helping the Chinese girl down on her chair, getting another raised eyebrow. “Never?” another grin, but no answer, as their driver approached Yoohyeon for a short exchange, the two agreeing on calling the driver whenever they were finished.

“Let’s go inside?”

\--

_[Day 14 | Inside the Zoo]_

A light breeze carried the song of a beautiful bird, its tail opening wide as if to show off its beautiful patterns, like a mocking to the surrounding (spacious) cage and the plain people amazed at the display.

Yoohyeon leaned over Handong’s face to get a better look at the boastful bird, as if she was the one awkwardly staring up from her wheelchair. A small ‘o’ shaped her lips, looking on in amazement as the bird ruffled his feathers, ending the show and retreating towards the back wall, wings flapping until it comfortably sat on top.

The doctor continued to hum as they spun around, returning back to the paved road they had just come from. Turning a right at the crossroad, Handong felt the chair go faster as the culprit spotted another big cage (this one with a notably higher security around it).

“Look look! Aren’t they so cool?!” Yoohyeon stopped the wheelchair near the rail, walking up beside Handong as she jump-pointed towards the wild cat lazily dragging its paws over the tree trunk it had previously been chilling on.

“Yeah.” She simply smiled back, holding in a laugh as she saw the hyper overgrown-puppy turn towards the wild cats again, following them with her eyes, a grin on her lips yet again.

“Do you think we could keep one as a house pet?” Yoohyeon turned to look at her with genuine curiosity, eyes blinking as she waited for an answer.

“Yooh… no!” she inwardly facepalmed, using her index to simply point at the giant cat stretching (still lazily), its claws digging into the wood under.

“But I want a cat! And a puppy!” Yoohyeon turned away from the cage, a pout on her lips, sulking as she walked towards the back of the wheelchair again.

“Then get yourself a normal cat.” Leaning her head back, the Chinese looked up towards the younger, a playful frown on her expression as if she waited for the doctor to go adopt a wild cat which happened to be half her size.

“Did you have a cat before?” Yoohyeon asked, leaning forward so her head was leaning down, mirroring the position of the other girl.

“Yeah…” sitting properly again, Handong let it trail off into a sadder tone than the beginning of the conversation, lighting a small spark of worry in the other. “Before my family kicked him out.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, it was long ago anyway.”

\--

A squirrel jumped from one corner of the confinement to the other, momentarily stopping, hanging on the fence and then going back to jumping around, almost as if never tired.

Handong was getting dizzy as she tried to keep up with the blur of a mammal, while Yoohyeon’s hand clenched around the fence, eyes staring inside the cage, eyes focused.

“What are you in for, huh?” she suddenly spoke as the squirrel came to a stop yet again. The sudden question caught the other by surprise, only for the confused expression to turn to that of disbelief as she laughed lightly, shaking her head at the younger girl. “Murder?”

“Or did you steal?” the doctor’s expression continued to be serious, solemnly looking towards the captured animal, or pretending to, she was probably not doing any better job than Handong in keeping up with all the movements. “I bet you did it for your family though.” Yoohyeon nodded her head as she continued to speak to the prisoner. “Don’t worry mate, I’ll get you out of here.”

Another laugh behind her, summoning her attention as she turned around to give the same solemn look to her companion, being instead met with rolling eyes and a continuous shake of her head.

“Don’t be silly.” A tag at the corners of her lips, cheekbones sharp, eyes closing slightly into that perfect eye smile.

_Beautiful._

Looking away from her companion, Yoohyeon couldn’t stop her own laughter, a light blush coloring her cheeks.

All cheesiness aside, but if it made her happy, she’d act silly anytime.

­--

Between walking, taking food breaks, gazing at the amazing and breathtaking animals and resting Yoohyeon’s arms while she flexed her wheelchair biceps, the duo realized hours had passed. Handong held the little map they got at the entrance on her lap, her fingertip trailing over the road Yoohyeon had started to walk towards.

“This is the last, Yooh.” She said, giving the hand behind her a pat as she folded the map again. “The exit in then only a few meters away from the last exhibition.”

Yoohyeon hummed in return, her eyes scanning over the vast field next to them, iron fences tightly sewn together, pictures of the habituating animal only a few meters ahead, pictures she couldn’t make out from how far they currently were.

That is until a white shape moved at their side, drawing her attention immediately.

“OH MY GOD DONGDONG LOOK!” Yoohyeon wasn’t the loudest person she knew, but at that exact moment, she wished she had had time to cover her ears. Before even being able to properly grasp the situation, Yoohyeon was already hurrying towards a raised platform, of course with a foot tripping on a rebel stone, almost falling over and summersaulting above the patient. After an exchange of scolding and apologies, the two made it at the top of the platform, where other people stood as well, their attention on the white predators right under them.

“Look look! They have Siyeon’s family here!!” Yoohyeon’s previous hyper behavior was back at full force, her hands pointing at the tundra wolves on the field while she laughed at her own joke. “God Siyeon would love to see this.” Snapping a quick picture, the doctor typed something on her phone and then returned her attention back on the wolves.

“Hey Dongdong?” she started, a mischievous smirk on her lips. “I’m gonna try something.”

Before the Chinese could even ask, the attention of all other people around them was now directed at Yoohyeon.

The doctor just… started howling.

Handong grumbled to herself, hiding her face on her hands in embarrassment as some laughed and some scowled at the doctor’s behavior.

But then the wolves howled back.

“DOOOOOOONG!!” the bright smile, the genuine happiness, it was all infective, and soon Handong was laughing with the doctor too, while she continued to howl towards the wolves, waiting for their response, something they never failed to deliver.

Perhaps this was where they spent the longest time at, simply leaning against the railing (or sitting close to it in Handong’s case) gazing down at the white furred animals as they went about their own routines.

“Man, I’m so tired.” Yoohyeon sighed, stretching her body as she looked around sulkily for a place to sit down, whining (cutely) as she found nothing.

Handong pondered for a second, biting her lip in thought. After what felt like a good minute, she sighed, grabbing her friend’s attention. With a small smile on her lips, she patted her lap. “Sit.” Simple, yet her cheeks burned now for some reasons.

Yoohyeon blinked dumbly for a few seconds, a blush coloring her cheeks, then with her head down to hide the growing redness, she sat down carefully on the patient’s lap, as if afraid to break her.

Handong laughed at the sight, the vibration from her chest tickling Yoohyeon as their bodies were closer now.

_She felt safe, in a way._

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 22 | XXX Hospital]_

“Doctor Lee, the results of patient Han.”

Nodding towards the nurse, the blue haired doctor skimmed over the written data, confirming what she already knew. The nurse excused themselves, rushing down the hallway towards another patient. Sighing, Siyeon looked through the glass window built on the inner wall of the rooms for operated patients.

Yoohyeon sat on a stool next to the patient’s bed, back turned to her but the doctor noticed her assistant was holding the Chinese’s hand, throwing random jokes if the tired expression of the other showing signs of amusement was anything to go by.

Siyeon felt proud of the younger, being able to convince the Chinese to undergo the operation hadn’t been easy, but she had succeeded. The patient now needed a long rest, but at least part of the pain had been relieved. A small smile fit on her lips as she could only imagine what stupid things Yoohyeon was blubbering to earn herself a smack on the head.

The vibration on her pant pocket brought the doctor out of her thoughts. Fishing her phone out, her smile stretched wider as she gazed down at the contact name.

“Hey baby.” She spoke softly to it, also keeping in mind to not be loud inside the hospital. “Yeah I know, but I’m still not sure if I can take the day off…” Siyeon sighed again, biting onto her lip as the voice on the other line turned sadder. “I’m sorry but we’re having a flood of patients now…”

Looking back towards her patient and friend, the doctor scratched the back of her neck. “I don’t know if I can just ask her this, but…” Yoohyeon, back still towards her, was already doing a little check up to make sure her condition didn’t change after the operation. Siyeon knew she wouldn’t refuse if asked, but the patient was in a delicate situation…

_Sigh, it wouldn’t hurt to try._

\--

_[Day 22 | OP Room 101]_

The silence of the room was only rhythmically broken by the beeping sound of the machine standing tall at the side of the bed. The gray haired doctor-in-the-making rubbed her thumb over the patient’s palm gently, soothing the wrinkles on her skin, lips a bit up-turned into a small smile as her eyes followed the lines, the Chinese woman’s chest rising and falling in even breathing.

Not many minutes after, the patient stirred in her bed, one of Handong’s eyes opening slightly to adjust to the room light.

“How are you feeling?” Yoohyeon asked, drawing the other’s attention to her face, the small smile still present but her eyes holding a fading veil of worry. She subconsciously squeezed the hand she was still holding.

“Weird.” Handong answered, laying her head down on the pillow and just staring up at the ceiling. “But it also feels… lighter.” She added, her free hand resting on top of her chest, the rhythm of her heartbeat tickling her fingertips.

“I’m glad.” Yoohyeon rose up from her chair, walking to grab a glass of water and then return back to her previous position. “Doctor Lee advised to be careful with activities until you fully recover from the operation. Of course I, or Doctor Lee, will always be with you until then.”

Handong nodded simply to the words. Both of them knew she wouldn’t move from the bed anyway, unless Yoohyeon came up with another trip idea to get her away from the gloomy routine of the hospital. The younger girl gave her another smile before excusing herself to call Siyeon and inform her the patient had woken up.

\--

_[Day 22 | Outside Hospital Room 273]_

Quite conveniently, Yoohyeon met the doctor she was searching for right outside in the hall. That saved her a long walk around the hospital floors. Before the two could enter inside their patient’s usual room, Siyeon had brought up a topic Yoohyeon wasn’t expecting, while at the same time, not really surprising.

“But promise me you’ll call me if anything goes wrong alright?” the doctor still seemed worried, even though the younger was trying, for the nth time, to convince her she could handle it by herself for one day. “Her house isn’t that far away from the hospital so I can come at any moment if needed-”

“Aye aye captain, how about you enjoy the day instead and leave Handong to me?” Yoohyeon grabbed her shoulders softly to stop the doctor from going any further. Siyeon still kept the worried expression drawn over her face.

“Are you sure?” she asked again in a low tone. “I don’t want you to be burdened.”

“Handong is my friend and I am here to learn so of course I’m ready for any emergency.” The grey haired girl gave her a wide grin, patting the older’s shoulder and then tapping her cheek playfully. “While you focus on that love interest of yours.”

Yoohyeon had to hold in her laughter when the blue haired girl slapped her hand down, taking long steps away from the younger and hiding her reddened face with her shoulders, hand reaching the door knob. “Focus on more important matters idiot.” She mumbled going inside, Yoohyeon following a step behind.

\--

Quite a bit of time had passed since Doctor Lee left the two alone, and Handong noticed Yoohyeon was still looking outside into space, seemingly deep in thought, a somewhat sad smile on her lips. The usual hyper pup of a doctor had been extremely quiet for some reason and now it was starting to worry the patient.

“Yooh?” she decided to call her name, and in honesty, the sudden turn of the other’s head at hearing the nickname was adorable. The medic muttered a ‘hum’ in response, eyes curiously traveling the Chinese girl’s face. But that somewhat sad expression was still there. “Everything alright?”

Yoohyeon was confused for a few silent seconds, her lips morphing into an ‘o’ shape after picking up on her own behavior. With a chuckle she walked towards the bed, the mattress sinking under her weight as her upper body lazily embraced the older girl.

“It’s fine, but I just realized…” she started, smiling slightly when she felt the hand patting her back. “Siyeon took the day off because it’s her girl’s birthday, so they wanted to have something special for the occasion. And then it got me thinking and I realized… you probably won’t make it… long enough to celebrate it again.”

The hand softly rubbing her back stopped its movements and Yoohyeon didn’t have to look at her face to know the expression the other had. The doctor’s heart clenched at the thought, a bitter reminder. The room was filled with silence again, an uncomfortable one.

“Don’t worry about it.” Handong started, patting the girl’s head in hopes of assuring her. “Birthday celebrations weren’t really that special before either.”

“But still~,” with a pout on her lips, Yoohyeon snuggled her nose into the girl’s hair, taking in a deep breath. She was glad the Chinese had become comfortable enough with her to drop most of her barriers. To Handong, days spent with Yoohyeon were the best, the girl bringing the change she needed after her gloomy days stuck inside a room with only machines as companions.

She’d forever be grateful for that.

Yoohyeon hummed against her side, one hand returning to playing with hers.

“I have an idea.”

\--

_[Day 23 | YYY Street Flea Market]_

The sun still shone brightly along the late afternoon hours. Yoohyeon had been pushing the wheelchair for quite some time now, the exertion of the whole process forgotten or ignored as her mind continued to be filled with laughter and joy.

People had passed by them, some faces repeated while the rest were new encounters. The flea market’s lively hours were slowly ending, considering the alley they entered now was almost deserted.

The two had bought nothing, despite walking around the area multiple times, fooling around with various products and earning themselves some judging looks or amused smiles.

“Hey hey, look at this!” her companion’s voice sounded somewhat muffled, and the Chinese girl had to stifle her laughter when Yooh entered her peripherals with a stupid looking mask on her face. It looked like a white long faced ghost, a black cloth hiding the rest of her head. Handong remembered having absentmindedly seen the face before, probably in some western movie she had passed by while it was being played.

The sight in itself was ridiculous. “Buy it so I don’t have to look at your face for the rest of the day.” Seeing her shoulders drop, the other could imagine the pout already, her laughter escaping past her lips, a beautiful melody.

“I would gladly entertain you but it’s hot.” The doctor sighed, pulling the mask off her head, blowing stray hair away from her eyes. The sun was beginning to set when they walked through the last aisle of tables. “C’mon I got one last thing to show you today.”

\--

_[Day 23 | XXX Hospital Rooftop]_

Handong had to admit the day had been tiring but fun. Each day her friend only seemed to resemble a big puppy more and more. Her clumsiness and charm brought the two in ridiculous situations, like when she almost pushed down a vase to its inevitable break, or when the younger woman borrowed a toy sword to lightly pat her heart while speaking an oath to be by her side with some fake deep voice.

In the end, the Chinese was grateful from the bottom of her heart. Even as the two sat down on a blanket laid over the rooftop floor; the light breeze playing with the strands of hair in front of her face; the hums it made when in contact with surrounding objects forming an off-beat song with her irregular heartbeat.

Yoohyeon had her back against the blanket, staring up at the stars with a small smile on her lips. The moon wasn’t in its enchanting full shape, but the mix of lights in a black canvas was beautiful still.

The doctor had prepared one last surprise for the patient before she had to take her back inside for safety measures. It had taken a bit of convincing for Doctor Lee to agree with her plan, but eventually she had groaned in defeat, granting the youngest permission.

A chuckle escaped her as she remembered the events of the previous day. It was afternoon when she had called Siyeon. The older doctor had answered immediately, faint music seeping in the background, the worried voice of another woman asking her if something was wrong. It took Yoohyeon a while to remember she had promised to call if Handong wasn’t well, almost letting out a laugh at her own forgetfulness.

But instead she quickly explained their patient is fine. Siyeon had let out a relieved sigh, only to growl back at her assistant for her careless action. Yoohyeon did laugh this time, trying to humor the doctor so she had a little higher chances of not being yelled at for her idea.

But she was wrong. Was worth a try at least?

Siyeon knew Yoohyeon could be stubborn when she wanted. So with a sigh, she looked into her girlfriend’s eyes, who previously leaned her head on her shoulder to listen to their conversation a bit. The girl nodded slightly, and the doctor gave up.

“Babe, Yoo needs our help to set something up.”

Yoohyeon got up to lean her shoulder against Handong’s, grabbing her hand into hers, thumb rubbing circles on her wrist, feeling the other’s pulse under her skin. Taking a peak at her phone screen, the doctor smiled as she pointed to a direction to draw the other’s attention. Her wallet will be crying till she gets paid for this month, but it was worth it, she thought.

Exactly when the numbers turned 00, a hissing sound was heard. Not long after, the familiar flash of fireworks flew to the sky. Their faces were soon brightened by the intensifying light show. Yoohyeon continued her gentle thumb movements, focusing on the girl’s pulse to pick up any changes, be it from panic or excitement.

Handong looked at the beautiful patterns of light in amazement. There was always something about fireworks that drew you into staring at them no matter how many times you already have. But the girl also wondered why someone would randomly be firing up fireworks tonight. Did Yoohyeon know about it? The patient remembered having been pointed out that Doctor Lee’s house was somewhere in that direction, but the birthday was yesterday…

“I know it isn’t your birthday or any special day,” Yooh turned to look at her as the fireworks started to die down. “But I still wanted for you to experience some sort of celebration, since we don’t know when you’ll be… gone.”

The last words were spoken in a lower tone, but to Handong the meaning behind them was unimportant in that moment. She felt… happy. Or perhaps that wasn’t the right word. She just knew being like this was one of the best things to happen to her, even though the circumstances leading up to their encounter weren’t the best.

Yoohyeon was starting to grow anxious from her lack of response, something Handong was soon to notice. A grin stretched on her lips and soon after the doctor was pulled into a hug that send them both down on the floor.

“Thank you.” She whispered against Yoohyeon’s collarbone, making a big smile form on the latter’s lips as she returned the embrace. It was a moment of peace, with only the stars to witness.

But like everything good that comes to an end, so did theirs. Yooh felt the hands on her back clutching into fists, pulling at her tshirt. Worried she raised her hand to push Handong’s hair behind her ear, getting a better look at the older’s face. She was sweating, teeth grit in what she presumed was pain.

“Handong?” keeping herself from panicking, Yoohyeon reached her Handong’s pulse, her ear close to her heart to listen to the beating. Eyes wide, her hand flew to her pocket in a worry, fingers clumsily trying to unlock it and call the doctors.

Handong’s breathing was irregular, her chest heaving as if she wasn’t inhaling enough air. Byt eh time Yoohyeon heard the first ring, the girl had already stilled. Biting her lip she could already feel the sting in her eyes.

“Yoo-”

Her voice quivered, thoughts becoming hazy as she tried to lay Handong comfortably. And then her mind went blank as it all sank in.

“She had a cardiac arrest.”

─────────⊹⊱✫⊰⊹─────────

_[Day 28: Emergency Treatment Room]_

A few days had passed by, the hours feeling long and painful, passing by in a blur to Yoohyeon. It felt like watching things from a viewer’s perspective: the rushing of doctors in and out, the tubes tied to the girl on the bed, the machines beeping to alarm the medics of her deteriorating state.

The Chinese girl had been in a coma since that day at the rooftop. Every time she’d assist Siyeon or get any news from the other doctors, a part of her own heart crumbled. It felt… strange, looking through the glass window at the older woman, her eyes closed in deep slumber, while Yoohyeon’s heartbeat picked up a sad rhythm.

Handong’s laughter echoed in her mind, a happy melody to her gloomy state. She let a small smile form on her lips, eyes gazing warmly towards the girl she found herself growing so close to in so little time.

A nurse passed by her, giving a short nod of acknowledgement before entering the patient’s room. Yoohyeon leaned her head against the wall, deciding to leave the place for a bit, while the nurse did her routine checkups on the patient.

But her steps got halted when the nurse’s voice boomed in the hallway, a siren call for the doctors in charge of the young Chinese. The next second a cardiologist she had seen several times before, the new pulmonologist and Doctor Lee ran by her, the nurse running back inside the room in almost panic.

Yoohyeon stood frozen. Her eyes faltered as Siyeon’s sharp ones bore into them, an almost frown adoring her features. Without exchanging any words, Siyeon grabbed the younger’s shirt, pulling the girl towards the room as well. The doctor had a bad feeling, and she didn’t want the other to regret her – possible – last moment.

The younger woman trailed behind her in a daze, her steps unsure, bottom lip quivering as all possible scenarios ran through her mind, none of which with a positive ending. She knew she had to remain professional, assist the doctors when they needed her help, especially so in such a dire situation. But instead the student was spacing off, half trying to deny the reality.

She knew some things weren’t meant to last forever, but why couldn’t she be selfish for once and wish they did?

“Yoohyeon get a grip!” Siyeon’s yell startled the other, eyes blinking repeatedly as she tried to remember whatever Siyeon had been asking her spaced out self for the past few seconds.

Yet all she managed was a stutter to her steps as the nurse pushed past her and brought back the device Doctor Lee needed.

Yoohyeon shook her head, focusing her eyes back on the girl as if she was just another patient. The heart monitor twitched a bit after every electric shot, but there was no major difference, if anything, it was looking worse.

The patient’s arm moved slightly, falling off the side of the bed. Yoohyeon saw it and slid down next to the patient’s hand, grasping it between her own and gently holding it.

If it was even metaphorically possible at this point, the student’s heart broke further when eyelashes tiredly fluttered open.

“It hurts…”

The air mask was already foggy from her breath and her fingers twitched while her eyes frantically searching for something, or someone.

“Yooh…”

Yoohyeon’s lips morphed into a small smile, trying to comfort the other despite the pained undertone.

“… thank you.”

Tears welled up in her eyes, teeth biting into her bottom lip as she tried to control the sudden surge of emotions.

“Date of death: August 16, 3:26pm.”

Yoohyeon’s head fell, her hands holding the colder hand tighter. The doctors left after bowing their heads in sadness, soon followed by the nurse who removed the tubes and covered the late patient’s face.

Doctor Lee sighed, standing behind her assistant, a hand gently patting her shoulder. But it only made the other shake harder. Siyeon’s eyes softened, pulling the other in a tight hug, hand combing through her hair as she lent her shoulder for her to cry.

“There was nothing you could do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Congratulations, you have reached the end~  
> Anything still left on your mind, please don't hesitate to comment :)


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